This episode was originally aired on December 7, 2022

WIND Mobile, now known as Freedom, was a small company that tried to break through Canada’s telecom oligopoly. It did not have an easy ride.

WIND faced numerous hurdles from regulators, it was subjected to dirty tricks from the telecom oligopoly, and was eventually sold to Shaw. But it also helped lower cell phone rates and brought in unlimited data and U.S. roaming, changing the wireless market permanently.

This is the inside story of WIND Mobile, from the people who were there.

Featured in this episode: Simon Lockie, Brice Scheschuk, Tony Clement

To learn more

• “Why can’t TTC riders use their cellphones on the subway? Ask Bell, Rogers or Telus” in The Toronto Star by Lex Harvey
• “Wind Mobile backer regrets Canadian launch” in CBC News 
• “Globalive offers $3.75-billion to buy Freedom Mobile” in The Globe and Mail by Alexandra Posadzki

Credits: Arshy Mann (Host and Producer), Jordan Cornish (Producer), Noor Azrieh (Associate Producer), André Proulx (Production Coordinator)

Additional music from Audio Network

Sponsors: Oxio, Squarespace

If you value this podcast, Support us! You’ll get premium access to all our shows ad free, including early releases and bonus content. You’ll also get our exclusive newsletter, discounts on merch, tickets to our live and virtual events, and more than anything, you’ll be a part of the solution to Canada’s journalism crisis, you’ll be keeping our work free and accessible to everybody.

You can listen ad-free on Amazon Music—included with Prime.